What do you feed your mice

Just got a small mouse colony today, but bred rats/mice before.
Harlan Teklad 8604
Brown's Hamster Seed Mix
Leftovers

I'm going to be switching the Harlan because the petstore just discontinued it. I'm currently checking into different poultry feeds for the correct nutrient levels and ingredients to feed to the rodents. The hamster mix I use for several reasons. One, it gives them a little bit of stimulation, two, it can keep them healthier, with the necessary oils and such in the seeds that the blocks don't always provide. The leftovers are fed to add more variety (and stimulation), and because I'm a stickler for not wasting food.

Teklad 2018

Basically anything I can get my hands on. Fresh veggies/fruits, bagged mice food, dog food, dog treats, random leftovers. Lol!

Question about hog feed: Have the effects of excessive copper in snakes been studied? (For that matter, how do the rats fare with that much copper in their diet?) I was tempted by hog feed as well, as it seems nutritionally to be VERY similar to rat lab block...but that copper really put me off). There's enough copper in hog feed to kill a sheep who gets into it and eats it.

What might that do to our reptiles?

Copper is so heavily supplemented in hogs because they have a HUGE tolerance to it, and it's believed to help them put on weight faster. They're given megadoses of it, it's almost impossible to find a hog feed that doesn't contain loads of copper. Excessive copper can cause digestive problems and liver and kidney disease.

So, do ball pythons have a high tolerance for copper...or a low tolerance? Not knowing the answer to that question, I would never feed them rodents raised on hog feed. Those rodents certainly will contain large amounts of copper.

Information on the dangers of excessive copper in sheep: http://ag.ansc.purdue.edu/sheep/articles/coppertox.html

A very unknown risk for our animals. It's a shame, because hog feed IS very cheap, and comes in convenient blocks.

Other:

Blue bag cat food from wally-world.

My Mice:
Lab blocks, either Mazuri or the brand petco carries depending on where I manage to shop when I run out.
The pregnant and nursing ones also get some good quality dog food because the petco brand lab blocks are a little low on protein.

My Rats:
Have the lab blocks available at all times but also get a bowl of seed mix once weekly, and get treats in the form of dog food and yogis.... I'm a little attached to my rats. :D

Quote:

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Originally Posted by jglass38

Mazuri 6F and leftovers.

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Most of my leftovers go to the rats, but ditto on the 6F.

Rats and mice both get lab block, sunflower seeds, and bird seed mixture.

Mine get what is left over in my big bag of rabbit food when we had one. They eat everything but the little pellets picky mice. Once that is gone I will prolly end up feeding them the $65 dollar bag of Wellness dog food since I get it free.

My own variation of Becky's Rodent Mix, plus Mazuri block and Science Diet senior dog food. With this mix I haven't lost a single litter, except once due to crowding issues. :)